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Speaker 1: You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Fine

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Speaker 1: from newstalk edb.

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Speaker 2: Begin their World Cup qualifying campaign this week to try

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Speaker 2: and make it to the twenty twenty six Football World Cup.

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Speaker 2: They play Tahiti this coming Friday. That game is in

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Speaker 2: Vanawatu and then on Monday they play a friendly against

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Speaker 2: Malaysia at North Harber Stadium, Albany. In November, it's van

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Speaker 2: Watu in Hamilton and Samoa in Auckland and New Zealand

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Speaker 2: Football have made the tickets really cheap for these games,

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Speaker 2: so they should be hopefully accessible to just about everybody.

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Speaker 2: Adults twenty dollars, kids just five plus ticketing fees for

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Speaker 2: the games here in New Zealand. Malaysia a week tomorrow

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Speaker 2: at Albany, then Vanawah to in Hamilton and Samoa in

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Speaker 2: Auckland in November. All White striker Ben Wayne of course,

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Speaker 2: is a big part of this side getting back us

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Speaker 2: and that's Mcaty has to get a shot of us.

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Speaker 2: Go over to the keep one known in New Zealand

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Speaker 2: of levels for Church's goal.

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Speaker 3: Bad way.

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Speaker 2: The substitute takes ad buntets and it's one one. We're

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Speaker 2: two minutes left to play. Yeah, that was the last

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Speaker 2: time the All Whites played a one all draw against

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Speaker 2: the United States. I want to ask you about that

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Speaker 2: goal in a minute, Ben actually, but thanks for joining us.

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Speaker 2: So you're currently on loan at Mansfield Town from your

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Speaker 2: parent club Plymouth arguy. Also, how's it going at Mansfield Town?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, it's really good.

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Speaker 4: The last couple of weeks have been been really easy,

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Speaker 4: to be fair, getting into a new team and everyone's

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Speaker 4: been friendly. And to get off the mark the other

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Speaker 4: day and then we had another two nil wind this afternoon.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, we're flying at the moment, so it's awesome. Yeah.

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Speaker 2: I so you scored your first goal against Crawley midweek.

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Speaker 2: Does that take the weight off your shoulders at all?

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Speaker 2: At a new club getting off the mark with your

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Speaker 2: first goal.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, big time.

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Speaker 4: No, I've been I've been working hard with the with

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Speaker 4: the time I've had and to be able to come

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Speaker 4: on and score the other day was it was really

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Speaker 4: special and like you said, massive, massive way off the shoulders.

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Speaker 2: Your manager at Mansfield is Nigel Cloth, who was a

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Speaker 2: fairly handy striker in his day. How helpful has he

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Speaker 2: been to you as a as a fellow striker.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, hugely.

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Speaker 4: I'd say he's definitely a bit more old school for

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Speaker 4: his coaching, but it's to be honest, it's really refreshing

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Speaker 4: some of the tips and stuff he's been given me.

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Speaker 4: The information has been just really straightforward and it's stuff

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Speaker 4: they haven't really thought about as well before. So it's no,

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Speaker 4: it's been it's been really really good.

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Speaker 2: So you're on loan at Mansfield. What's the situation around

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Speaker 2: Plymouth Argle your parent club? How much contact do you

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Speaker 2: retain with them and what's the nature of that contact.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, no, very good contact.

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Speaker 2: To be fair.

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Speaker 4: The one of the physios will always stay in touch

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Speaker 4: with me just to make sure everythink's okay. And there's

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Speaker 4: a there's a one of the coaches called Nance who's

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Speaker 4: a plumothar goal through and through and he he keeps

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Speaker 4: in touch with me as well.

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Speaker 3: So no, the relationships still really strong.

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Speaker 4: Everyone everyone agreed me going on loan was the best

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Speaker 4: thing for me and then hopefully it can potentially be

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Speaker 4: a fit Plymouth in the future.

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Speaker 2: So yeah, So you've been playing in the UK for

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Speaker 2: a while now, I been there a couple of years.

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Speaker 2: Is playing in the United Kingdom, playing for Plymouth, Argyle

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Speaker 2: and Mansfield Town. Is it what you expected it would be?

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Speaker 4: Yeah, and a lot more as well. I knew it

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Speaker 4: was going to be absolute cardage coming over here. The

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Speaker 4: amount of games and the level as well, it's different.

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Speaker 4: The intensity is extremely high and sometimes it can be

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Speaker 4: a bit like pimball as well.

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Speaker 3: So getting used to that, I'm not gonna lie.

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Speaker 4: It took me probably over a season and a bit

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Speaker 4: to even get used to that, and then we jumped leagues,

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Speaker 4: so it's been my whole time has.

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Speaker 3: Been spent adapting and adapting.

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Speaker 4: So now I feel like I'm at a place where

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Speaker 4: I've learned some vital lessons in terms of how to

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Speaker 4: adapt and what are the best things to do in

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Speaker 4: these situations.

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Speaker 3: So I think it's going to pay.

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Speaker 2: Off good to hear back in with the national team

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Speaker 2: now though for the next seven to ten days. I

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Speaker 2: know you're looking forward to that. What's it like when

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Speaker 2: you all get back to together. You're all spread far

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Speaker 2: and wide, Now, what is it like when you come

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Speaker 2: together in the national team.

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Speaker 3: It's it's amazing.

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Speaker 4: It's really really good as well, because you know you've

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Speaker 4: got points from the Phoenix that we're we've all gone

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Speaker 4: our super ways now, you know. But I've played with

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Speaker 4: those lads for a decent amount of time and to

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Speaker 4: be able to see what they're doing and then come

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Speaker 4: back together and play together again as special. And yeah,

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Speaker 4: I'm driving out tonight to go stay at the airport hotels.

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Speaker 4: I'm looking forward to, looking forward to catching up with

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Speaker 4: your run.

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Speaker 2: And when you do get together, I'd imagine it's similar

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Speaker 2: to any bunch of guys getting together who haven't seen

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Speaker 2: each other for a while but spend time together. In

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Speaker 2: a situation like this, do you just sort of slip

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Speaker 2: back into the old the old banter, the old ways.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, undred, I think that's down down to Sam Sun

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Speaker 4: as well. He's he's he's straight on it as soon

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Speaker 4: as we're back together. So yeah, it's it's really good

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Speaker 4: that it's like that, you know, It's like we haven't

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Speaker 4: been apart, so it's really good.

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Speaker 2: So the last time was quite recently, actually a window

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Speaker 2: which involved games against Mexico the United States. The drawer

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Speaker 2: against the US. Your goal later on talkers through.

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Speaker 3: It just a classy goal, really was. It was one

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Speaker 3: of those ones that's.

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Speaker 4: Probably never ever going to score again, but just a

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Speaker 4: result of putting players under pressure and a little bit

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Speaker 4: of hard work, and you know sometimes you get those rewards.

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Speaker 4: And the funny thing is, as soon as the defender

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Speaker 4: kicked it into my chest, I just knew. I think

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Speaker 4: you can see the video. I've run off with my

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Speaker 4: hand up. As soon as it said my chest, I've gone,

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Speaker 4: that's going in. And do you score some of those

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Speaker 4: throughout a career and you take them one hundred percent?

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Speaker 4: But I like to think it's also a result of

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Speaker 4: grafting art results.

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Speaker 2: Absolutely, but also all joking aside, do you take pride

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Speaker 2: in having to be there because you know ninety nine

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Speaker 2: times had one hundred you make that run and put

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Speaker 2: pressure on the defender and nothing happens, right, they clear it,

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Speaker 2: but thee hundredth time it does. So do you take

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Speaker 2: pride in being in the right place and putting pressure

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Speaker 2: on the opposition defenders?

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Speaker 3: Yeah?

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Speaker 4: Exactly, And I think think to be fair, it's something

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Speaker 4: that Chris Greenecker used to always tell me.

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Speaker 3: It's not necessarily in that situation.

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Speaker 4: He did not coach me in that situation, but more

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Speaker 4: so just receiving the ball off across or whatever.

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Speaker 3: Nine times out of ten, the ball's not going to

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Speaker 3: come to you.

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Speaker 4: But the time you don't make the movement or you

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Speaker 4: do that action, you guarantee the ball's going to be there.

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Speaker 4: So it's you know, it's just a matter of repetition

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Speaker 4: and numbers and constantly doing it. And yeah, law of averages,

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Speaker 4: I guess is the best way to put it.

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Speaker 2: When you're inside the Old Whites CAMPI in how much

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Speaker 2: help and assistance and guidance and advice do you get

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Speaker 2: from Chris Wood?

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Speaker 4: Yeah, I get a decent amount, to be fair, He's

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Speaker 4: just really open person in terms of, you know, you

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Speaker 4: can feel comfortable to go and ask him about certain situations,

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Speaker 4: which I do. I don't piss him all the time,

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Speaker 4: don't get me wrong, but if something comes to mind

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Speaker 4: or he sees something, then he will say it. But yeah,

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Speaker 4: I like to have that relationship with him where I

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Speaker 4: know I can ask him for advice when I need

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Speaker 4: it and he keeps in contact as well, which is

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Speaker 4: really nice.

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Speaker 2: So the path to the next World Cup is, on

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Speaker 2: the face of the things anyway, a lot more straightforward

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Speaker 2: for New Zealand. A direct entry for Oceania or the

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Speaker 2: winner of the Oceania competition into the next World Cup

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Speaker 2: in twenty twenty six. So as I say, that seems

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Speaker 2: a lot more straightforward. And you know, I guess most

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Speaker 2: people would expect you to account for the other Oceanian

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Speaker 2: nations fairly comfortably. How do you avoid complacency though, you know,

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Speaker 2: not just expecting to turn up and win these games.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, that's a very good question, and I think the

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Speaker 4: best way to look at it is what we did

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Speaker 4: at the Nation's Cup.

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Speaker 3: You could have said it as well.

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Speaker 4: There wasn't other than a trophy, There was no qualifying

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Speaker 4: or anything off the back of that. But I think

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Speaker 4: the way we handled ourselves in terms of every game,

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Speaker 4: we try to keep our standards as high as we could,

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Speaker 4: never let up, and just continued to go and go

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Speaker 4: and go, and just made sure that we held ourselves accountable.

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Speaker 4: I think that was the biggest thing. And you saw

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Speaker 4: what happened. So look, I'm not going to say it's

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Speaker 4: going to be easy and we're going to go and

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Speaker 4: we're gonna win, but obviously you would like to think so.

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Speaker 4: But the biggest thing is we've done it before and

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Speaker 4: we know what what we have to do. I think that, Yeah,

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Speaker 4: I think that's probably the biggest point.

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Speaker 2: Of course, we're sure mentioning the Olympic Games as well.

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Speaker 2: You played for New Zealand at the recent Olympics and

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Speaker 2: Paris scored the winner against Guinea. That was a goal

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Speaker 2: that was much more your own work. How do you

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Speaker 2: reflect back on the Olympic campaign with New Zealand.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, it was it was awesome and a great start.

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Speaker 4: I mean, obviously the score is always amazing. That was

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Speaker 4: saying I really wanted to tick off a goal at

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Speaker 4: the Olympics, but obviously a bit of a shame in

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Speaker 4: terms of we couldn't get out of the group. We

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Speaker 4: came up against some really, really good opposition, but at

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Speaker 4: the end of the day it wasn't meant to be.

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Speaker 4: But it was just nice to also have that have

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Speaker 4: that responsibility to be that striker that's leading the line

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Speaker 4: as well. I think I really enjoyed having that kind of.

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Speaker 3: Role on the team.

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Speaker 2: Fantastic. Well, it's an exciting time ahead for fans of

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Speaker 2: New Zealand football and for the players I'm sure as well,

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Speaker 2: with the World Cup qualification path to begin. This coming

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Speaker 2: from Ben travel safe to more the side of the world.

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Speaker 2: Look forward to seeing you over here. Thanks for taking

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Speaker 2: the time for a chat awesome, thanks Pladi, Thanks Ben

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Speaker 2: Ben Waying there from the All Whites game on Friday

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Speaker 2: against Tahiti in Vanuatu and then the friendly against Malaysia

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Speaker 2: in Auckland on Monday and then games in November and

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Speaker 2: Hamilton and Auckland against valowhay To and some more respectively.

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Speaker 2: Ticket price is yeah, pretty cheap, twenty bucks for adults,

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Speaker 2: five for kids plus ticketing fees, so pretty accessible really.

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Speaker 1: For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live

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Speaker 1: to News Talk zed B weekends from midday or follow

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Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio